1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a substrate transfer robot, a substrate transfer device, a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, and a method for producing a semiconductor.
2. Discussion of the Background
A substrate transfer robot has hitherto been used to transfer a substrate (a semiconductor wafer or a mask) to a desired position in a manufacturing apparatus and a testing apparatus for a semiconductor (hereinafter generically referred to as a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus). The substrate transfer robot includes an arm unit formed by a plurality of arms connected in a manner such as to be turnable on a horizontal plane, and a substrate gripping portion, called a hand or a fork, provided at a leading end of the arm unit. A substrate is transferred to a desired position while being placed on the substrate gripping portion.
In the substrate transfer robot of the related art, when a substrate is moved from a taught position taught beforehand to another taught position (target position), a path connecting the taught positions is generated as a transfer route to the target position on the basis of information about the taught positions, a transit point, and the minimum turning posture. That is, positions to which the substrate transfer robot transfers the substrate, such as positions of a storage container or a treatment device for the substrate, are taught, and one transfer route from a certain point to a certain target point is generated. Using this transfer route, the substrate is transferred between a storage container and a treatment device or between treatment devices.
Unfortunately, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that needs to shorten the substrate transfer time between the storage container and the treatment device or between the treatment devices, when the substrate transfer robot is used with the highest possible performance (the turning speed of the arm is nearly at the limit and the transfer speed is thereby nearly at the limit), the substrate transfer time is further shortened by adjusting the taught positions or adjusting information about generation of the transit point in the related art (for example, see Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-174092).